Berry Face
by CreativeKiss
Summary: Hatori stumbles upon a lovely girl and can't get her sweet face out of his head. His yearning for her is unnatural, and he spends months trying to see her again. Once he does finally meet her, he realizes that his obsession is inappropriate as well.


**Disclaimer: I do not own Fruits Basket or anything associated with it. No copyright infringement is intended.**

**Berry Face**

Hatori had lost all faith in women. None of them had inspired him quite like Kana had, and he didn't believe that would every be the case. That was until he saw _her. _

She had bumped into him in town on accident and dropped a basket full of berries. The concrete stained purple and red, leaving splatters like fireworks along the street. The girl's face was as red as the berries she carried as she tried to mop up the mess with her handkerchief. Hatori couldn't bring himself to look at her. He only scooped up as much of the salvageable berries as he could and watched her dash down the street. Neither of them had spoken a word to each other.

The fleeting memory of her flustered face haunted him in his sleep, hovering through his dreams on a billowing, white cloud. The temptress of his fantasies, the vampire of his nightmares; she tortured him in consciousness and unconsciousness. Her exceptionally pale skin, her frailty, her luminous green eyes, her small lips, her gentle curves were all emblazoned into his memory, flowing freely like her ebony hair. Her reddening cheeks were perhaps the most memorable. His modern Snow White, his berry-face, his special secret. Hatori would always remember. Three days passed. He knew he had to see her again.

Hatori wandered to the street where he had seen his berry-face, and rested in an alleyway. He could survey the street well from his location, so if she passed this way again, he would surely see her. Waiting made his snowy heart thump in his chest and his body grew warm. Was the snow surrounding his heart melting at last? Or was it the thrill of the chase, the adrenaline, that formed the icy puddles within his body. Once he saw her again, he was rooted to his spot, unable to step into the light. She didn't appear to notice him, and as she continued down the street oblivious, Hatori found himself angry for hiding from her. He was suddenly cursed with this highly irrational, uncharacteristic longing and desire, and he still wasn't motivated to take hold of what he yearned for so greatly. He was wasting his time. He vowed to forget this endeavor and move forward.

It was a month later when he saw her again, and she saw him too. Hatori managed to step out of the shadows, but she stepped away from him. As Hatori gradually stepped closer still, she disappeared down another alley, vanishing entirely. For hours Hatori searched for her down the street and its accompanying alleys, but she was gone. This time, her mark upon him was permanent, and he couldn't forget her. The chase was far to sweet and far too tempting to ignore, and Hatori refused to do so.

This girl had robbed him of his sense of responsibility, and Hatori found himself hiding from Ayame and Shigure more than usual. And he didn't dare imagine what Akito's reaction might if Akito learned of his fetish. He felt like a fool, chasing after this young girl, and his two best friends would both show him shame if they learned of this passionate obsession of his. He found himself in disguises and ruses, hoping to fool his sweet berry-face as he waited longingly for her.

With time, Hatori came to realize that he saw his berry-face with increasing frequency. She was clearly teasing him now, making use of her own fantasies. The combination of lust and innocence had fused, bringing them closer and closer to confrontation as each day passed. Her elusiveness made Hatori want her more, and his determination lured the girl to him. And one day, as Hatori waited hopefully for his berry-face at an outdoor cafe, she appeared before him with a small basket of berries.

"What is your name?" Hatori asked, kicking out a hair for her with his foot. The girl lowered her eyes and sat down nervously. "I've no foul intentions."

"Kinomi," the girl replied. A small smile formed on Hatori's lips. It was extremely small, nearly invisible, and Kinomi did not notice it.

"Sohma Hatori." Kinomi still did not look up at him.

"An impressive family," she mumbled.

"Are you afraid of me?" Hatori asked.

"Shouldn't I be?" Kinomi asked. "You've been following me for months."

"I must admit my behavior as of late is entirely uncharacteristic of me," Hatori said somberly. "I apologize for my behavior."

"I ran away from you that day because I was embarrassed," Kinomi said, referring to the day they had first seen each other. "I suppose a typical reaction to the way I felt for you then would have been to ask you to coffee, but I don't know how to be that woman. And besides, I know you're much older than me. It wouldn't have been fair for me to imply any differently." Despite the fact that her eyes were averted from him, Hatori found loneliness in them.

"There is something else," he encouraged, tilting her chin up with his pinky finger. After Kinomi's eyes met his briefly, she lowered them again, but Hatori was satisfied with this and lit a cigarette.

"I don't trust myself," Kinomi said. "I'm naive and...I probably shouldn't have said that."

"I may be older than you, but that doesn't make me an animal," Hatori said calmly. He glanced up from his cup of coffee and was pleasantly surprised to see Kinomi looking directly at him. "Yes?"

"What do you do for a living?" Kinomi asked.

"I'm a doctor."

"For the Sohmas?"

"Yes," Hatori replied, snuffing his cigarette on the table top.

"Is it really smart to wear your hair like that in your profession?" Hatori hid his surprise. He was sure he hadn't heard this question before.

"My eye isn't exactly perfection besides," Hatori told her. He noticed her almost instinctual attempt to raise her hand as if to check, but she stopped herself.

"What happened?" she asked instead.

"It was injured in an accident."

"What sort of accident?" It was then that Hatori understood what Kinomi meant by 'younger'. Her inquisitiveness much resembled that of a child's, a quality that one tended to outgrow around their twenties.

"How old are you?" Hatori asked Kinomi. Kinomi began to blush vibrantly, and Hatori was once again struck by her berry-face.

"Sixteen," Kinomi mumbled. Hatori hid his shock expertly. "Don't tell me how old you are, okay? I already guessed, and that's good enough for me."

"That's fine," Hatori said. Was he an animal? He thought of the months he had spent dreaming of her, longing for her, and of everything he had done up until that moment, and as he sat there staring into her green eyes, he truly felt like an animal. They were both silent for a long time.

"Do you want to know what my guess is?" Kinomi asked. Hatori fought the urge to pull out another cigarette.

"Sure," he mumbled. He remembered the basket of berries on the table and helped himself to one. They were as sweet as he had dreamed Kinomi was. Raspberries were his favorite anyway. Eating him reminded him of the berry-stain fireworks in the concrete the day they had met. He lost himself for a moment, and it was Kinomi's small thumb on his chin that brought him back.

"Berry juice," she said nervously.

"So tell me your guess," Hatori said quickly. Kinomi smiled weakly.

"Twenty-five," she answered. "Don't tell me if I'm right." She was a few years off, but her guess was relatively accurate. Hatori then thought about their casual conversation, and found that he greatly enjoyed it despite its lustful prologue of fantasies, elusions, and mysteries. He then checked his watch and remembered that he was to visit Shigure that day. Ayame had probably arrived early, and knowing him, he had probably pushed all of Yuki's buttons.

"What are you doing a week from now, this same time?" Hatori asked. Kinomi drew back, startled. "That face isn't very becoming of you. We can have a polite and appropriate conversation again, just as we have now."

"Is that what you want?" Kinomi asked. "Truly?"

"I think it would be nice," Hatori said. "And next time I'll have more money in my wallet so that we can both eat. What do you say?"

"I really shouldn't..." Kinomi mumbled.

"I understand then," Hatori said, standing.

"But I'd like to," Kinomi blurted out awkwardly, standing as well. She bit her lip nervously. "Same place, same time, Sunday?"

"Yes."

"Okay then," Kinomi mumbled bashfully. "Thank you, Mr. Sohma. I'm looking forward to it."

"As am I," Hatori said. "But please, 'Mr. Sohma' makes this situation more suspicious." The somber doctor glanced around, hoping the other customers weren't paying too much attention to them.

"Hatori, then?" Kinomi asked.

"Better," Hatori agreed.

"Goodbye," Kinomi said quickly, dashing down the street. Hatori took the berries with him and headed towards Shigure's home. Kinomi's sweet face, so tepid and pure, was forever in his consciousness. Was it a mistake, inviting her to lunch? But if he didn't see her again, he didn't know what he'd do. There was something about the forbidden that made it so purely fascinating and irresistible. He hadn't understood that before then. _Now, if they ask, where did I get these berries?_

_

* * *

_**A/N: "Kinomi" means "berry", which is why Hatori smiles upon learning her name. **

**Hope you enjoyed it!  
**


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